Apple has stopped selling some Apple Watches on its website because of patent dispute (2024)

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Apple has stopped selling some Apple Watches on its website because of patent dispute? ›

Apple pulls online sales of Apple Watches

The ITC issued the ban after finding that Apple infringed on blood oxygen saturation technology patented by a company called Masimo. It also ordered Apple to stop selling any previously-imported devices with the infringed-upon tech.

Two months ago, Apple lost a patent case over the technology its smartwatches use to detect people's blood oxygen levels. The company was ordered to stop selling the Apple Watch Series 9 and Watch Ultra 2 after Christmas, which could set off a run on sales of the watches in the final week of holiday shopping.

The ITC banned sales of two new models released in 2023—the Apple Watch Ultra 2 and the Apple Watch Series 9. Apple halted in-sale stores of both models on December 24, and halted online sales the prior week, Apple told the appeals court. The company began using the feature with new watches with the Series 6 in 2020.

At the end of 2023, Apple was barred from selling the two wearables by the US International Trade Commission because of a dispute over a patent for the technology Apple uses in the watches' blood-oxygen sensor. Apple had appealed that ruling and was granted a temporary stay on the ban while the court reviewed the case.

The ban is the result of a patent dispute with medical device maker Masimo. The ITC has ruled that the SpO2 sensor in Apple's smartwatches infringes upon Masimo's patents. On Wednesday, the ITC denied Apple's motion to stay the ban while awaiting an appeal.

The halt in online sales comes after the International Trade Commission ruled that Apple violated patents from Masimo, a health-tech company, related to blood oxygen monitoring. Both of the watches being pulled from shelves have a feature that tracks the wearer's blood oxygen levels.

The agency's patent judges have found Apple guilty of appropriating innovations in smartphones, semiconductors and smartwatches. And recently, they forced Apple to remove a health feature from Apple Watches. Now the tech giant is pushing back.

This pause is related to an intellectual property dispute over the Blood Oxygen feature on both models, which would restrict Apple's ability to sell products that use the feature.

Yes, Apple Watch Is Ditching the Blood Oxygen Feature, but It's Not a Great Loss. Charlie Sorrel has been writing about technology, and its effects on society and the planet, for 13 years. Apple has removed the blood oxygen feature from the Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2. The ban is US-only.

Why can't Apple sell their watches? ›

Apple stopped selling its Series 9 and Ultra 2 watches last week in stores and online in response to an International Trade Commission order in October that found the blood oxygen sensor in the devices had infringed on intellectual property from Masimo , a medical technology company that sells to hospitals.

Things You Should Know. Disable features like "Always On", "Hey Siri", "Wake on Wrist Raise," and other features to save battery life. If your Apple Watch is an older model, the battery may have deteriorated due to age. Low battery life could also be due to software update issues or pairing problems.

Apple will no longer make or restock watches with blood oxygen monitoring, but will instead ship new units with that feature removed. That means the Series 9 and Ultra 2 will both be available, with plenty in stock. But the older models will only be up for grabs as long as they're available.

In 2021, AliveCor filed an antitrust lawsuit against Apple over the heart-monitoring technology used in the Apple Watch, claiming that Apple had abused its monopolistic power with the electrocardiogram (ECG) technology.

It wasn't that easy to use, the battery didn't last long, and notifications sometimes failed to show up. Magazines like Fast Company even said that it was too perfect for the real world. Apple made people's lives easier, and this device didn't. As a result, the media labeled it as a flop.

The Apple Watch offers a Do Not Disturb mode and a Cinema mode, but if you want to be entirely free of reminders and notifications, there's not much point in owning an Apple Watch. It's still going to nudge you about things, and if you have it in Do Not Disturb mode all the time, you may as well buy a regular watch.

The list of obsolete models includes the first-generation Apple Watch Edition with an 18-karat gold casing, which cost up to $17,000 in the U.S. when it was available. The solid-gold Apple Watch was discontinued in 2016 and replaced with a ceramic Apple Watch Edition, which was a more affordable luxury at up to $1,299.

Apple has added the Apple Watch Series 1 to its list of obsolete products, meaning that it will no longer receive updates or repairs. The Series 1 was launched in 2016 and featured a dual-core processor, heart rate sensor, and touchscreen Retina display.

In a report from MacRumors, supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said that a new Apple Watch Ultra 3 is likely to be released in 2024. A 180-degree flip from previous reports that Apple wouldn't release a new watch at all this year.